Cybersecurity Experts Share Insights on Tea’s Data Breach: What You Need to Know | CNN Business

The popular dating app Tea, designed for women to share dating experiences safely, recently faced a major data breach. About 72,000 images were compromised, including 13,000 selfies submitted for account verification. Users were typically asked to upload a selfie to verify their identity when signing up for the app, but the company claimed these photos would be removed after approval.

Additionally, the breach exposed around 59,000 images that were publicly visible from user posts and messages. This incident has raised serious concerns about privacy and the risks of sharing personal images on dating apps. The breach specifically affected users who signed up before February 2024.

Rachel Tobac, CEO of SocialProof Security, highlighted the dangers of seemingly innocent selfies. They can be misused in combination with government IDs, potentially leading to identity theft. She recommends that users be proactive: freezing credit, using privacy tools, and securing social media accounts with strong passwords and multifactor authentication.

The trend of requiring selfies and personal information for identity verification is growing in popularity but poses risks. “Every piece of information collected makes a company a more appealing target for cybercriminals,” Tobac noted, emphasizing the need to protect users’ data seriously.

Albert Fox Cahn, director of the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project, cautioned against the normalization of facial recognition technology. He believes that increased data sharing leads to more surveillance, which is not a solution to the problems faced in online dating. “Opting out gives users better protection,” he advised.

This isn’t the first time dating apps have been involved in security breaches. For instance, Tinder faced issues in 2014 that could disclose users’ locations, and Ashley Madison announced in 2015 that hackers had accessed millions of user accounts.

In response to these security challenges, some companies and local governments are implementing more rigorous verification processes. For example, Tinder now allows users to verify their accounts using official documents, and Texas has introduced a law requiring age verification for app users.

Richard Blech, an expert in AI security, explained that images can serve as a “data goldmine.” Breached selfies can be used for AI-driven attacks, including identity fraud and creating deepfakes. He stressed that users whose images were leaked need to monitor their credit reports closely, as biometric data is permanent and can be exploited in various ways.

In summary, while the Tea app aimed to create a safer dating experience, this breach serves as a warning about the importance of data security. Users must take steps to protect their personal information and remain vigilant in an increasingly interconnected world.

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